Falling oxygen levels harming already struggling wildlife and drinking water supplies, say scientists.

The focus of world leaders on responding to future outbreaks overlooks the far cheaper and more effective strategy of stopping the spillover of disease from animals to humans in the first place, scientists warn.

The studies will focus on using trees, peat, rock chips, and charcoal to absorb CO2 as a solution to global warming.

Dirty air is already known to increase hospital treatment for severe asthma attacks and other respiratory problems. But new research is the first using clinical data to show increased illness among the much bigger number of people who seek treatment from their doctor.

Unless actions by governments and corporations cut emissions in the here and now, a dose of skepticism is in order, writes Damian Carrington, environment editor with the Guardian.

Fossil fuels, cattle and rotting waste produce methane, a greenhouse gas responsible for 30 per cent of global heating. Cutting it is the strongest action available to slow global heating in the near term, the UN's environment chief says.

They may be much-hated insects, but wasps are voracious predators of pests, produce powerful antibiotics and pollinate plants.

The massive melting of glaciers has tilted Earth's rotation, showing the impact human activities are having on the planet.

A new white paint reduces the need for air conditioning, reflecting 98 per cent of sunlight and radiating infrared heat into space.

Destruction of forests is a major cause of both the climate crisis and plunging wildlife populations, as natural ecosystems are razed for farming.